PDF converter

Do you need to save some web pages or some spreadsheets as a PDF file but there is no program on your computer that can do this? Would you like to convert a series of PDF documents into Word files, so that you can freely edit them, but you don’t know how? Don’t despair. Believe it or not, there are tons of solutions you can turn to, all free and extremely simple to use. You just have to choose the one that seems to you best suited to your needs and that’s it.

There are software (in some cases already integrated into the system) which, working as a virtual printer, allow you to transform any type of printable file into PDF (e.g. Office documents, Web pages or photographs) and online services that allow to perform a conversion in both directions: to and from the PDF format. All without installing software on your PC and without paying a penny. There are also apps suitable for this purpose that can be used by smartphones and tablets if you need to convert documents on the go.

In short, whatever type of conversion you have to do – don’t worry – you don’t have to buy any paid PDF converter. You can do everything from the print menu of your operating system, from the browser you use to browse the Internet or from your smartphone or tablet. Happy reading and good work!

Index

• Virtual printer
  • Windows 10
  • Windows 8 and earlier versions
  • macOS
• Online PDF converter
  • CloudConvert
  • Files
• App to convert PDF

Virtual printer

If you need a PDF converter to turn text documents, spreadsheets, web pages or any other printable file into PDF, don’t think twice and use a virtual printer. In case you are not aware of it, virtual printers are software that configure themselves as “real” printers (they therefore become accessible via the command to print any application), they process the information that is given to them “In meal” and turn them into PDF documents. They are now also integrated into all the main operating systems for PCs, smartphones and tablets: to find out more, read on.

Windows 10

If what you are using is a computer with Windows 10 installed, I am happy to inform you that the system has a “standard” virtual printer. To use it, all you have to do is open the printable document you want to export to PDF using the program you usually use for that particular type of element, call up the print command from the File menu (or from the menu in the program in use) and choose Microsoft Print to PDF or Save as PDF from the list of available printers.

For example, if you want to convert a web page opened in Microsoft Edge to PDF, just click on the […] button located in the upper right part of the browser window, select the Print item from the menu that appears and choose the option Microsoft Print to PDF from the Printer drop-down menu located at the top. Next, adjust (if necessary) the print settings (e.g. margins, orientation etc.) and save the web page as PDF by clicking the Print button.

Windows 8 and earlier versions

If you are using Windows 8 or a previous version of the operating system from Microsoft, unfortunately, you do not have an integrated virtual printer at your disposal like on Windows 10. Fortunately, it is possible to easily remedy this by exploiting one of the many third-party resources used for the purpose. .

Among the various available on the square, I personally recommend you try  FreePDF, which is also free for commercial purposes and allows you to fine-tune all the settings of the output files. Unfortunately its development has been discontinued but it continues to run smoothly. It is based on  Ghostscript: a free software that interprets Adobe’s PostScript page description languages ​​and PDFs, so both must be installed.

To download FreePDF, connect to the official website of the virtual printer and click on the Download FreePDF x.xx link at the top, in the Download section. To download Ghostscript, instead, go to this other page and click on the gs926w64.exe  link  (if you are using 64-bit Windows ) or on the gs926w32.exe link  (if you are using 32-bit Windows ).

Then open the Ghostscript .exe file you just obtained and complete the setup by clicking, in the window that opens on the desktop, first on the Yes button and then on the Next,  I Agree,  Install and  Finish buttons. Then, open the FreePDF4.14.exe file and, in the window that appears on the screen, set up FreePDF by clicking on the Yes,  Setup and  End buttons.

At this point, all you have to do is open the printable file to be transformed into PDF, call the Print command from the File menu and select  FreePDF from the list of available printers. Finally, adjust (if necessary) the print settings (eg margins, orientation etc.) and save the PDF by pressing the Print button.

macOS

If you use macOS, you can transform any file into PDF without resorting to third-party software using the virtual printer already included in all Macs, similar to what you can do with Windows 10. Open, therefore, the file to convert (eg. a text document, a photo or a Web page), call the Print command from the File menu and select the Save as PDF item from the drop-down menu located at the bottom left of the next window.

In the further window that opens, type the name you want to assign to the file in the Save as field, select the location on your Mac to export it through the Located in menu (or by clicking on the button with the down arrow at the top of right) and presses the Save button.

If you deem it appropriate, you can customize the document properties (title, author and subject) or protect it with a password, by clicking on the Security Options button, indicating whether you want to be prompted for the password to open the document or just to copy its contents and print it and finally typing the secret word to use.

Online PDF converter

The idea of ​​using a virtual printer to convert your PDF files does not appeal to you and would you therefore like to understand what are the online alternatives you have from yours? Then take a look at the Web services specifically used for the purpose that I have reported to you below. I’m sure they will satisfy you.

CloudConvert

If you are looking for a very easy-to-use online PDF converter, try  CloudConvert. It is free and allows you to convert many different types of files between them: documents, images, videos, etc. It has an upload limit of 100 MB (expandable to 1 GB if you create a free account on the site or more by switching to the paid version starting from 8.54 euros/month) and protects users’ privacy by deleting, within a few hours, all files that are uploaded to its servers.

To use it, connect to its main page and drag the documents to be converted into the browser window. Alternatively, press the Select Files button and select “manually” the files on the computer that you want to process with the service. By pressing the button with the arrow located next to the Select file’s item, you can also take files from supported cloud storage services (eg Dropbox and Google Drive ) or by providing the relative link, after selecting the reference option from the menu that you opens.

At this point, select the desired destination format by clicking on the gray link located at the top right, after the item to (e.g. to doc to transform files into doc) and presses the Start conversion button to start the conversion.

Then wait for the processing of the documents to be completed and download the output files by clicking on the Download button that appears next to their names. If you have uploaded multiple files and want to download them all at once, press the Create archive button to download them as a compressed archive, selecting the format you prefer from the menu that opens.

Convert.Files

Covert Files is another PDF converter capable of transforming PDF documents into Word files, Mobi / ePub e-books or even images, and vice versa. It faithfully respects the layout of the original documents (within the limits of the possible) and allows you to work with large files up to 250 MB. It’s free and the files uploaded to the service are deleted after a few hours.

To convert a PDF with Convert Files (or transform other types of files into PDF), linked to the main page of the site and click on the Browse button. If you want, you can also upload files from the web, by selecting the or download I from option and indicating the relative link in the adjacent field.

At this point, select the document to be transformed, indicate the format you want for the output from the drop-down menu Output format and click on the Convert button to start the conversion process. When the operation is completed, click on the link that appears in the center of the screen to download the converted file to your PC. Easier than that?

App to convert PDF

As anticipated at the beginning of the post, there are also PDF converters that can be used directly on the move, from smartphones and tablets. If, for example, your intention is to convert a printable document into a PDF file, please note that you can rely on the default printing function of Android and iOS.

Both platforms, in fact, include a virtual printer which, similar to the ones I told you about in the passage at the beginning of the article, allows you to export any printable content in PDF. For more details on this, I refer you to reading my tutorial focused specifically on how to print in PDF.